The Fae Slums grew in the gaps and cracks in the tapestry of Madrience, the side alleys and crumbling blocks left to rot away by human society. The trash-strewn alleys offered one of the few refuges to the fae who were otherwise rejected and thrown out of society. The area received no funding from the government, and the jobs that were available for the fae did not pay enough for them to fix up the area on their own. But even in the desolate impoverishment of the slums a few buildings provided shelter against the unforgiving world around them.
One such place was a warehouse at the north end of the slums. The business that owned the building abandoned the building and left it to decay, but the fae took over the building and the warehouse now served as a place of worship for The Church of Sylvia. Compared to the surrounding area, the walls and floors of the room were clean and in excellent repair. White, orange, and yellow bioluminescent lamps lit the room and the pictures of the gods of the pantheon shared by the fae and anglers, while flowers and incense gave the space a clean, sweet scent. Fae prayed all around the chamber. A majority sat separately meditating on specific deities and using their magic to try to connect with the Sylvian pantheon, although one group gathered around a woman reading passages from a copy of the church’s holy book.The room was a sacred place that offered shelter, warmth, community, and the comfort of the gods to any who gathers within. In such a holy place of the fae, the presence of an elderly human woman stood out. Ines prayed at this site every week, so the other worshipers were used to her by now. Even so, she received several glances from the other worshipers around her.
Ines was an older woman with short, grey hair and pale skin. Her face was wrinkled, but most of the wrinkles formed laugh lines left behind by a long and joyful life. In her hands, she held a token with the symbols of Pesca, the goddess of sea life and fishers. The pendent depicted an angler, several fish, and one of the sacred tridents wielded by the angler queen's royal guard that Pesca blessed to help the guard protect the queen and her subjects.
Ines finished a mental prayer to Pesca asking for good fortune for the angler fisherwoman and safety for her family restaurant, The Peridot Parade, when a familiar figure joined her. Silvio looked relatively human for a fae, although he was more spindly. He had bristly grey hair and extremely white skin that had a blue tinge in the right light. As always, he wore frayed and faded work clothes that smelled of ash and smoke. Silvio frequented Ines’s restaurant since she decided to renovate the place and open it up to all species, and he helped introduce her to the fae pantheon when she first joined the religion. Ines made a point to keep in touch with him.He was a wonderful acquaintance, although he tended to complain about his job. Yet, knowing the working conditions in El Gris, Ines couldn’t blame him. He heaved a long sigh as he slouched on the bench next to Ines.
“Hello Silvio. Rough day at work?” Ines asked as Silvio sat.
“Just as always. Il Lupo decided we were not working diligently enough, and increased our hours, again.”, Silvio grumbled.
“Again? How many times has this been?”
“Four times in the last two weeks. At least I’m better off than the worker that got his arm caught in the chains of one of the assembly belts, and Il Lupo caught him healing the injury with magic. That earned him docked pay, and a beating from one of Il Lupo’s overseers for his troubles.”, Silvio muttered and gave a bitter laugh “Ridiculous.”
The retired restaurant owner’s eyes widen as she blinked, “Doesn’t that go against labor regulations?”
“I don’t know. It’s not like it matters, the Trade Council won’t do anything about it either way. What does the Trade Council care if a El Gris factory manager does not respect the safety of the fae. Not like we can even vote on the issue. Humans are bastards.” Silvio grumbled, before adding “Present company excluded of course.”
“I understand.” replied Ines, recalling her own troubles with her own species.
The general human population of Madrenice, particularly those who worshiped the Great Creator, took offense at her announcement that Peridot Parade would serve all species. Most avoided Ines in the streets or harassed calling her an ‘angler lover’ and several other names of varying levels of creativity. In addition, unknown aggressors attacked the Peridot Parade three times since the announcement. Luckily, no one was in the restaurant during any of the attacks. But, the aggressors had smashed the windows and destroyed several of the tables and chairs and painted specist statements all over the building. Ines went to the police, but they couldn’t find out anything about who attacked the restaurant and possibly didn’t even investigate the incidents at all.
“It is galling. We have magic when humans don’t, so they throw us into the jobs they don’t want and give us the short stick on everything. We are not even allowed a say in the laws and government. Only humans can vote, and they don’t let anyone else hold a seat on the council”
“I know, I know.”, Ines sighs, “The fae are not the only ones troubled by the government’s actions. Many anglers and automata are also discontent about being limited to certain jobs, and not being able to sit on the council. I’ve been meeting with some humans who are advocating societal reform, but we’ve not been able to win enough seats on the council to push any legislation through.”
“I’m tired of all this! I wish we could just chase all the humans out and take charge ourselves!” the frustrated factory worker shouted, interrupting the meditation of nearby fae. Silvio looked sheepish in response to the glares of the other worshipers.
Ines waited for the fae to return to their prayers before responding, “Do we want to start that sort of conflict? Besides, even if we could face Madrenice’s police and military and take charge, the rest of Ityian will descend on us.” Seeing Silvio’s frown, Ines continues, “ I am not saying we shouldn’t do anything, but there are ways to improve the wellbeing of all the species of Madrenice without a violent overthrow of the government.”
“Like what?”, Silvio responded.
“Most of Madrenice’s trade comes in through Starfish Port. The anglers have threatened to block trade in the past. If we acquire enough support from the anglers, we can form a blockade. Even the Ityian army can effectively deal with an angler blockade, and the Trade Council would likely concede to our demands to regain their source of wealth.”, Ines mentions.
Silvio stares off into space a few seconds mulling over the suggestion, before remarking “I suppose that could work. We could also strike. The government is already starving for workers after recruiting so many soldiers to the war in Copioso. They won’t be so proud and pompous when they have no one to run their factories and stores. We might want to gather everyone who is interested and work out a plan. Ines, most folks know where the Peridot Parade is and it is accessible for everyone including the anglers. Would you be willing to host a meeting?”
Ines smiles, “Of course. Just let me know when, and I’ll have the dining area ready for you.”
One such place was a warehouse at the north end of the slums. The business that owned the building abandoned the building and left it to decay, but the fae took over the building and the warehouse now served as a place of worship for The Church of Sylvia. Compared to the surrounding area, the walls and floors of the room were clean and in excellent repair. White, orange, and yellow bioluminescent lamps lit the room and the pictures of the gods of the pantheon shared by the fae and anglers, while flowers and incense gave the space a clean, sweet scent. Fae prayed all around the chamber. A majority sat separately meditating on specific deities and using their magic to try to connect with the Sylvian pantheon, although one group gathered around a woman reading passages from a copy of the church’s holy book.The room was a sacred place that offered shelter, warmth, community, and the comfort of the gods to any who gathers within. In such a holy place of the fae, the presence of an elderly human woman stood out. Ines prayed at this site every week, so the other worshipers were used to her by now. Even so, she received several glances from the other worshipers around her.
Ines was an older woman with short, grey hair and pale skin. Her face was wrinkled, but most of the wrinkles formed laugh lines left behind by a long and joyful life. In her hands, she held a token with the symbols of Pesca, the goddess of sea life and fishers. The pendent depicted an angler, several fish, and one of the sacred tridents wielded by the angler queen's royal guard that Pesca blessed to help the guard protect the queen and her subjects.
Ines finished a mental prayer to Pesca asking for good fortune for the angler fisherwoman and safety for her family restaurant, The Peridot Parade, when a familiar figure joined her. Silvio looked relatively human for a fae, although he was more spindly. He had bristly grey hair and extremely white skin that had a blue tinge in the right light. As always, he wore frayed and faded work clothes that smelled of ash and smoke. Silvio frequented Ines’s restaurant since she decided to renovate the place and open it up to all species, and he helped introduce her to the fae pantheon when she first joined the religion. Ines made a point to keep in touch with him.He was a wonderful acquaintance, although he tended to complain about his job. Yet, knowing the working conditions in El Gris, Ines couldn’t blame him. He heaved a long sigh as he slouched on the bench next to Ines.
“Hello Silvio. Rough day at work?” Ines asked as Silvio sat.
“Just as always. Il Lupo decided we were not working diligently enough, and increased our hours, again.”, Silvio grumbled.
“Again? How many times has this been?”
“Four times in the last two weeks. At least I’m better off than the worker that got his arm caught in the chains of one of the assembly belts, and Il Lupo caught him healing the injury with magic. That earned him docked pay, and a beating from one of Il Lupo’s overseers for his troubles.”, Silvio muttered and gave a bitter laugh “Ridiculous.”
The retired restaurant owner’s eyes widen as she blinked, “Doesn’t that go against labor regulations?”
“I don’t know. It’s not like it matters, the Trade Council won’t do anything about it either way. What does the Trade Council care if a El Gris factory manager does not respect the safety of the fae. Not like we can even vote on the issue. Humans are bastards.” Silvio grumbled, before adding “Present company excluded of course.”
“I understand.” replied Ines, recalling her own troubles with her own species.
The general human population of Madrenice, particularly those who worshiped the Great Creator, took offense at her announcement that Peridot Parade would serve all species. Most avoided Ines in the streets or harassed calling her an ‘angler lover’ and several other names of varying levels of creativity. In addition, unknown aggressors attacked the Peridot Parade three times since the announcement. Luckily, no one was in the restaurant during any of the attacks. But, the aggressors had smashed the windows and destroyed several of the tables and chairs and painted specist statements all over the building. Ines went to the police, but they couldn’t find out anything about who attacked the restaurant and possibly didn’t even investigate the incidents at all.
“It is galling. We have magic when humans don’t, so they throw us into the jobs they don’t want and give us the short stick on everything. We are not even allowed a say in the laws and government. Only humans can vote, and they don’t let anyone else hold a seat on the council”
“I know, I know.”, Ines sighs, “The fae are not the only ones troubled by the government’s actions. Many anglers and automata are also discontent about being limited to certain jobs, and not being able to sit on the council. I’ve been meeting with some humans who are advocating societal reform, but we’ve not been able to win enough seats on the council to push any legislation through.”
“I’m tired of all this! I wish we could just chase all the humans out and take charge ourselves!” the frustrated factory worker shouted, interrupting the meditation of nearby fae. Silvio looked sheepish in response to the glares of the other worshipers.
Ines waited for the fae to return to their prayers before responding, “Do we want to start that sort of conflict? Besides, even if we could face Madrenice’s police and military and take charge, the rest of Ityian will descend on us.” Seeing Silvio’s frown, Ines continues, “ I am not saying we shouldn’t do anything, but there are ways to improve the wellbeing of all the species of Madrenice without a violent overthrow of the government.”
“Like what?”, Silvio responded.
“Most of Madrenice’s trade comes in through Starfish Port. The anglers have threatened to block trade in the past. If we acquire enough support from the anglers, we can form a blockade. Even the Ityian army can effectively deal with an angler blockade, and the Trade Council would likely concede to our demands to regain their source of wealth.”, Ines mentions.
Silvio stares off into space a few seconds mulling over the suggestion, before remarking “I suppose that could work. We could also strike. The government is already starving for workers after recruiting so many soldiers to the war in Copioso. They won’t be so proud and pompous when they have no one to run their factories and stores. We might want to gather everyone who is interested and work out a plan. Ines, most folks know where the Peridot Parade is and it is accessible for everyone including the anglers. Would you be willing to host a meeting?”
Ines smiles, “Of course. Just let me know when, and I’ll have the dining area ready for you.”